Scythe
by grace days three
Summary: When Rin takes it upon herself to invite an outsider into their group will Sesshomaru be able to uncover her past or will Scythe forever live without ever knowing who she is?
1. Chapter 1

**Please review. Thank you.**

The woods always made her feel better as she walked through them near her village. Scythe was considered an outcast in her village because she was different from the rest of the villagers even her name was very strange. However she didn't let it bother her Scythe knew how to take care of herself and gather her own food because the villagers rarely let her eat with them. Even if she was an orphan the villagers took no pity on her and it seemed to only intense their hate towards her. Taking a deep breath Scythe enjoyed the smell of leaves of the forest floor and the calmness the forest always seemed to offer her.

"Do you want to be my friend?"

Scythe was suddenly brought out of her thoughts as a little girl no more than the age of six peeked around a tree at her.

"What is your name little one?" Scythe asked politely.

"I am Rin and what is your name?" Rin steeped out towards Scythe.

"I am Scythe and I would love to have you as my friend. I have never had a friend." Scythe smiled down at he little girl.

"Do you want to go to the river with me to catch some fish?" Rin offered.

"Sure I was just about to do that anyway." Scythe began to follow the little girl to the nearby river.

"Rin, you stupid girl you shouldn't run off by yourself or else Lord Sesshomaru will get very mad if something was to happen to you." Suddenly a small green imp came out of the bushes yelling at Rin.

"Who is this little demon Rin is he your friend too?" Scythe wasn't scared of the demon at all.

"Oh, this is master Jaken and he looks after me. Though personally I find him to be a bit annoying." Rin giggled at Jaken's annoyed expression.

"Rin who is this filthy human you are talking to?" Jaken suddenly glared at Scythe.

"This filthy human has a name imp." Scythe glared right back at Jaken.

"Rin, Lord Sesshomaru is leaving soon so come back to camp so we can be off." Jaken decided to ignore Scythe completely.

"Hey Scythe do you want to join us?" Rin asked excitedly.

"Sure if it is okay with this Lord Sesshomaru guy." Scythe knew for a fact that she would not be missed.

"What do you think you are doing Rin inviting scum in the presence of Lord Sesshomaru?" Jaken squawked as he raised his staff in protest.

"Jaken what is taking so long?" Suddenly a silver haired demon walked up to the little imp.

"Um you see my Lord, Rin has invited scum into our group and I was trying to get rid of her." Jaken bowed at his Lord's feet.

"Lord Sesshomaru this is Scythe and I was wondering if maybe she could come with us?" Rin asked timidly as she played with her kimono.

"She may come along." Sesshomaru said nothing more as he inspected the golden haired girl who looked down at her bare feet in nervousness.

"Thank you Lord Sesshomaru." Scythe bowed to Lord Sesshomaru trying to stay on his good side. Without another word he turned on his heels and walked away. Rin shouted in happiness as she grabbed hold of Scythe's hand and led her after the inuyoukai. Scythe was a little excited as she was now realizing that her life was about to drastically change for the better hopefully.

"Scythe this here is Ah-Un. They are really nice." Rin ran up to the two headed dragon as she patted their snouts in turn. Scythe had never seen such a creature before but she immediately walked up to the beast without fear and smiled as she let them sniff her hand before beginning to pet them.

"Hey you guys you're really neat looking you know that?" Scythe loved animals and was gently speaking to the two heads as she ran her hands through their manes of soft fur. Discreetly staring at the girl Sesshomaru sensed that something was off with the girl and that she was somehow very different from other humans he had encountered in the past. Her human aura seemed too strong for it to be human but Sesshomaru didn't dwell long for he began to walk away with his small pack following after him including the newest member. Scythe kept whipping her head around taking all of the sights in for she had never ventured far form her village even though she was not welcomed but she felt that it was safer than being by herself in the wilderness. Rin sat on Ah-Un's back as they walked while Scythe walked next to the dragon keeping a hand on his side as she gently stroked him enjoying the feel of his smooth scales under her touch. That night after they made camp and had something to eat Rin excitedly told Scythe all about her travels with Lord Sesshomaru and how they were hunting down an evil hanyou called Naraku. Scythe listened with interest evident on her face. Sesshomaru was sitting propped up against a tree across from them and he was lost in his own thoughts as he observed Scythe. Soon Rin fell asleep exhausted from all the days activities but Scythe was wide awake and quietly got to her feet as she approached Ah-Un.

"Hey you guys, you not tired either?" Scythe gently spoke to the two heads as she began to pet them. Soon Ah-Un was relaxed under her touch as Scythe immersed herself with gently massaging the dragon and Ah-Un laid on his side as Scythe rubbed his soft under belly scales. Smiling at the dragon Scythe had not realized that she was being carefully observed. No matter how he tried to reason with himself Sesshomaru could not shake the feeling that Scythe was more than she presented herself as. Scythe now was massaging the dragon's ears and Ah-Un rumbled in happiness as he leaned into her touch. Sesshomaru could certainly tell that Scythe had a way with animals that most people did not.

"Are you not tired human?" Sesshomaru suddenly spoke to Scythe causing her to jump in a slight startle.

"No Sir, I take a while to fall asleep. Don't worry it is nothing." Scythe didn't like the intense glare that shone in Lord Sesshomaru's golden eyes.

"Sir?" Sesshomaru was taken aback by Scythe's strange word.

"What would you prefer I call you?" Scythe was unsure if Sesshomaru was angry or just intrigued.

"I do not care. Who were your parents' girl?" Sesshomaru suddenly blurted out before he could stop himself.

"I do not know Sir, I never met them they passed when I was very young and the villagers' never told me anything. They hate me for no reason though and I find it a bit strange. I have done nothing to provoke them so I do not understand where their anger is emanating from." Scythe turned her attention back to Ah-Un as she continued to gently massage their ears.

"Hm." Was all Sesshomaru responded with before resuming to stare at the girl's back lost in his thoughts.


	2. Chapter 2

As the sun had started to creep up letting some rays of its warm light reach the land Scythe woke up from her slumber. For as long as she could remember Scythe was always up when the first rays of the sun touched the earth. Stretching her back Scythe yawned flashing her teeth in the sun's rays which caught Sesshomaru's attention. Sesshomaru only slept for a couple of hours that night because he didn't require a lot of sleep to restore his energy.

"Good morning Lord Sesshomaru." Scythe inclined her head at Sesshomaru when she realized that he was awake.

"We do not leave for a couple more hours why are you up so early?" Sesshomaru asked the girl.

"I always wake up at this time." Scythe explained to Sesshomaru.

"Hm." Sesshomaru diverted his attention away from the girl to watch the sun rise higher in the sky. After a couple of hours Rin was waking up and smiled when she saw that Scythe was awake as well.

"Good morning little Rin." Scythe smiled back at Rin.

"I'm not little." Rin answered back.

"My apologies big Rin." Scythe smirked at Rin as the little girl began to giggle at the silly title. After Scythe had helped Rin get ready for the day she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. Glancing around Scythe could see no one else around except for the group. Shaking her head Scythe just told herself that she was being paranoid and that she should not worry especially if there was a strong demon like Sesshomaru to protect them. Soon though the little group was back on their path following Sesshomaru and so Scythe never got a chance to explore around in the woods like she wanted to do but she didn't mind. Scythe remained quiet for the most part of the trip occasionally answering some of Rin's questions.

"Lord Sesshomaru I am hungry can I go and look for food please?" Rin suddenly spoke up in the afternoon.

"Shut up girl there is no food for you here so just keep going. Lord Sesshomaru doesn't have time to be wasting on you to go look for food." Jaken shot back at the girl before Sesshomaru could even answer Rin. Scythe was shocked at the way the imp spoke to Rin. Sweeping her foot sideways Scythe knocked Jaken down as she kept walking past as though nothing happened. Jaken didn't have enough time to yell out because just then Rin ran over him to catch up to Scythe and Ah-Un.

"Why you." Jaken spit out dirt from his mouth as he got back up.

"I will not tolerate such talk towards Rin. It is one thing if you were to say it to me because I am older and can handle such foul language but Rin is just a child so I suggest you watch your mouth Jaken." Scythe told Jaken over her shoulder as she continued to walk.

"I do not take orders from scum such as you. I alone follow Lord Sesshomaru and no one else." Jaken yelled back. Scythe just shook her head as she didn't feel like responding.

"Here Rin you can eat this." Scythe pulled out some dried meat from her pocket that she always had on hand.

"Thank you Scythe." Rin took the meat and began to eat it. Sesshomaru had remained quiet the entire time thinking about Jaken and Scythe's quarrel and he had to admit that Jaken should be a bit more behaved when it came to Rin because she was young and innocent.

"Lord Sesshomaru are you looking for me?" Suddenly Naraku appeared with his miasma cloud.

"That is Naraku." Rin whispered under her breath because she was scared. Scythe looked at the hanyou and didn't see why Rin was so afraid.

"What a creepy guy. Wow I bet you he has a hole in his basement full of missing children. Are you even sure it is a guy what is it is a girl maybe it is a he-she." Scythe talked loud enough for Naraku to hear. Sesshomaru was shocked at Scythe's words and couldn't help but smirk at her insults. Naraku was about to capture Rin who was avoiding his tentacles but Scythe diverted his attention to herself and away from Rin.

"Hey you ugly brute. Do you feel like a big boy picking on small children? I know it is just so much fun. I bet you just love little kids don't you; you can't seem to keep your tentacles to yourself. Ha is that all they are good for?" Scythe threw a rock at Naraku. When Scythe let Naraku capture her Sesshomaru was speechless and was wondering if Scythe perhaps was trying to distract him so that he could attack and hopefully land a fatal blow.

"Do you bathe? Gosh you reek of creepiness and slime. Did your daddy hit you and your mommy left? I bet that is how you are so messed in the head now. Would you like to talk about it?" Scythe knew that she was risking her life but she was not scared. Just then Sesshomaru saw Scythe beckoning him to make his move with one of her hands that were behind her back and so Sesshomaru used his demon speed and soon pierced Naraku right through his chest causing him to release Scythe in mid air and he disappeared. Sesshomaru caught Scythe before she hit the ground and put her down.

"Why did you do that he could have killed you." Sesshomaru questioned Scythe.

"Hey it worked didn't it? Plus that was fun and he really is creepy looking." Scythe was not at all afraid.

"You are very strange." Sesshomaru told Scythe before he looked for the rest of his scattered pack.

"Wow Scythe that was awesome you were like so cool." Rin ran up to Scythe and hugged her leg.

"Hahaha did you see the look on his face. He was so confused it was worth it." Scythe laughed as she relived the event in her head.

"hey Jaken maybe you could put that mouth to good use next time he shows up maybe you could help divert his attention." Scythe told Jaken who just grumbled under his breath but didn't say anything. The rest of the day went uneventfully and soon night fall fell and Scythe was helping Rin gather firewood.

"So why does Sessh not talk a lot is he just like that?" Scythe asked Rin.

"Yeah he was never much of a talker and I don't mind because Jaken talks all the time so he fills in the silence." Rin bent down to pick up another stick.

"What a strange pack we make." Scythe commented as she though about it. Rin giggled as she agreed. When the girls came back Jaken shouted at them that they took too long and he was about to go out and waste his time looking for them.

"Jaken silence." Sesshomaru sharply reprimanded causing everyone to look in his direction. After putting down the fire wood Scythe went to Ah-Un to pet him some more and get to know him better.

"Hey Sessh, can I remove Ah-Un's muzzles so that they can eat?" Scythe asked Sesshomaru as she glanced his way waiting for a response.

"You will address my Lord with his proper title that he deserves unlike you; you filthy scum." Jaken was indignantly waving his staff around in a threatening manner. Before Scythe could respond Sesshomaru kicked the imp sending him flying into a tree. Scythe was so shocked that she did not react.

"You may." Sesshomaru answered Scythe's question.

"Hey you guys what an eventful day huh? Does that feel better you guys. You guys are so cute I just want to hug you." Scythe cooed at the two heads as they nuzzled her back.

"Ah-Un is not a pet Scythe." Sesshomaru watched how Scythe interacted with the dragon.

"Yeah but you got to love on them some times so that they don't leave." Scythe responded as she continued to pet the heads as they were eating the grass near her feet.

"Hm." Sesshomaru had nothing else to say.

"Hey Scythe were you scared today?" Rin asked her as she laid down at her side getting ready for bed.

"No why should I be? Sesshomaru was there and he got rid of him plus you weren't hurt." Scythe ruffled Rin's hair as she smiled at the little girl lovingly. Soon Rin and Jaken both were fast asleep worn out from the day.

"You made a good choice with her Lord Sesshomaru." Scythe watched Rin sleeping for a little while before looking at him for a reaction.

"She stays by her own will I do not force her to do anything." Sesshomaru responded. Scythe smirked and chuckled lightly at his response. Laying on her back with her arms folded under her head Scythe watched the stars come out from their day of napping. Sesshomaru still couldn't figure out the girl she was a complete enigma to him and it intrigued him.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day Scythe woke up with the sunrise just like the previous day and greeted Sesshomaru.

"What is on the agenda for today?" Scythe asked Sesshomaru.

"I have someone I would like to meet." Sesshomaru replied back.

"Hey Sesshomaru are you familiar of the story of the black phoenix?" Scythe asked out of curiosity.

"No." Sesshomaru had no idea what the girl was talking about.

"Well my village used to talk about it a lot. Would you like to hear the story?" Scythe offered to Sesshomaru to pass the couple of hours until Rin would be awake.

"Hm." Sesshomaru was slightly interested.

"Back before the time of man and demons there used to be phoenixes in abundance everywhere. They would cause the sun to rise every morning when they woke up and for it to go down when they went to sleep. The rule that all phoenixes followed was that they did not fly during night time or else the darkness would take hold of their hearts and they would be a slave of the dark forever. Everyone followed this rule everyone except one phoenix who thought he could do it and prove them all wrong and so before nightfall one day he announced his intentions and everyone protested against it but he did not heed their warnings. After all the phoenixes had fallen asleep the one phoenix spread his bright red wings and took flight through the night sky but soon after he noticed that his feathers began to become as black as the moonless night. Fearing the darkness the now black phoenix flew back to his flock but in the morning when everyone else woke up they did not recognize the black phoenix to be a part of their flock and so they forced him out of the flock. Angered and alone the phoenix flew off to see if he could join another flock of phoenix's but was greeted with the same answer; no. An outcast of his own kind the black phoenix flew all by himself and when ever he passed over an animal or another phoenix he would hear laughter the animals would make fun of his dreary feathers that were now stained black as could be. After living a year in his lonely existence the black phoenix's heart now matched the color of his feathers it was taken over by the blackness of hatred and anger. Because the other phoenixes could not see him in the cover of the dark night the black phoenix exacted his revenge and slaughtered every last phoenix on the planet yet he was not satisfied and his misery grew as he realized that he was all alone on the earth. Now realizing his mistake the black phoenix searched the earth for any surviving phoenixes but found none only an un hatched phoenix egg. Deciding to take care of the hatchling the phoenix chick did not know the difference between itself and the black phoenix and as the phoenix grew up into a beautiful female the black phoenix found that he was growing feelings for her. Deciding to try and save his species the black phoenix took the female phoenix as a mate and they produced one offspring. The black phoenix was now back to his red color and he was so happy to be rid of the curse but he did not realize such a curse did not simply vanish it had to go somewhere and so when their offspring hatched it was inky black. Outraged at the color of his chick the once black phoenix abandoned his chick and mate to fend for themselves and in her anger and grief the female phoenix cursed her mate to live with his curse for the rest of his life so it is said that every century a black phoenix is born to be hated by the world as a symbol of abandonment and disloyalty." Scythe finished her story right as Rin was beginning to stir awake.

"Interesting." Sesshomaru was thinking the story over.

"Good morning little Rin." Scythe ruffled Rin's hair as Rin sleepily protested. After Rin had eaten breakfast the small group got up and began to once again travel in what ever direction Sesshomaru wanted to go.

"Sesshomaru what do you want?" A boy shouted at Sesshomaru and Scythe realized that they looked a little alike.

"Rin who is that?" Scythe asked Rin in a hushed voice in case Sesshomaru got offended.

"That is Lord Sesshomaru's half brother he is a hanyou." Rin responded in the same hushed tones.

"I take it that they don't like each other." Scythe could tell from the snarling and angry glares thrown in each other's direction.

"Inuyasha I would like to see your miko." Sesshomaru snarled at Inuyasha.

"No way on earth are you even going to lay a finger on her." Inuyasha snarled back.

"It is fine Inuyasha I'm sure Sesshomaru would like to speak to me or something." Suddenly a strangely dressed girl walked up next to Inuyasha placing a hand on his shoulder trying to calm him down.

"That is Kagome she is from the future some how she is very nice." Rin told Scythe before she could even ask her.

"Miko I require your abilities for a minute." Sesshomaru asked Kagome in an emotionless voice.

"Sure what do you need my help in?" Kagome walked up to Lord Sesshomaru confidently.

"Miko can you tell if there is something suppressing this girl's aura?" Sesshomaru pointed at Scythe.

"Hello I am Kagome and I just need to hold your hand for a sec so don't worry nothing is going to happen." Kagome approached Scythe.

"I am Scythe nice to meet you Kagome." Scythe offered her hand to Kagome. Closing her eyes Kagome focused on slowing her breathing down so she could calm herself. Scythe stared in wonderment when Kagome's hand suddenly began to glow a pretty light pink color. Gasping in horror Kagome pulled her hand back very quickly as though she just touched a very hot object.

"Your soul is black as night. It is tainted in anger and loneliness. You have a spell suppressing your true identity and I am not strong enough to remove it but I don't think it is wise to remove it. There is something living in you like a curse or something whatever it is it does not sit well with me." Kagome looked deep into Scythe's light green eyes. No one spoke for what seemed like a lifetime before Sesshomaru spoke up dismissing Kagome and heading away. Scythe moved as if in a trance trying to figure out if what Kagome said had actually happened or if it was a dream. It is not every day that someone told you that your soul was black with anger and loneliness and that you have something living in you.

"Don't worry I think that you have an amazing soul Scythe." Rin saw how Scythe now doubted herself.


	4. Chapter 4

"Where we going Lord Sesshomaru?" Rin asked in an innocent voice.

"To my castle." Sesshomaru responded without stopping to look back. Subtly looking back Sesshomaru could see that Scythe was uncharacteristically quiet. Focusing his attention to the front Sesshomaru kept walking. Scythe had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that something bad was going to happen and she didn't know what it was. Suddenly the air turned green and Sesshomaru snarled viciously before taking a fighting pose and Scythe was right behind him in case he needed back up not like she had a weapon or anything. Suddenly Sesshomaru's body went lax and he toppled backwards and Scythe was not fast enough to escape and got pinned under him. Gasping for breath Scythe heard a couple of her ribs crack and it also seemed that one of Sesshomaru's swords had impaled her in the side. Gathering her strength Scythe tried to push Sesshomaru off of her but her arms shook with fatigue before she flinched in pain as her injuries flared up.

"Scythe are you okay?" Rin asked as she could not see the girl.

"Rin… can you….get my water…jug from …Ah-Un's saddle and …try to wake …him up?" Scythe instructed Rin between gasps. Rin did as she was told and dribbled some water on Sesshomaru's face and soon enough he opened his eyes groggily.

"Get…Up." Scythe all but growled between her clenched teeth. Sesshomaru just then realized that he was laying on someone and got up quickly. Scythe slowly rolled onto her side where she wrapped an arm around her ribs and took deep gulps of air.

"For someone...who doesn't eat you…sure weigh a lot." Scythe had her eyes closed in pain as she tried to focus on getting to her feet.

"Scythe you are injured!" Rin gasped as she saw the blood begin to seep through Scythe's clothes.

"Rin I will live it is okay." Scythe tried to calm down the panicking little girl.

"Sesshomaru do you have an extra piece of cloth?" Scythe now opened her eyes and looked up at Sesshomaru who was standing over her observing her silently. Without saying a word to her he went over to a fast asleep Ah-Un and pulled out an extra strip of cloth from his saddle bags. Hissing in pain Scythe wrapped the cloth around her side covering the open wound.

"You should not stand so close behind me." Sesshomaru told Scythe as he felt a twinge of guilt upon seeing and smelling the girls pain.

"Thank you for the advice unfortunately the lesson was learned the hard way." Scythe replied with a pained smile. Suddenly Rin screamed and both Scythe and Sesshomaru looked at the girl.

"What…what is that?" Rin pointed to a cluster of bushes where a little white head was poking out of.

"Arrow you didn't follow me all the way from the village did you boy?" Scythe greeted the strange looking creature who gave a happy chirp and ran to the girl.

"Scythe what is that?" Rin asked a little curious as she watched the creature circle Scythe.

"This is a ferret some time ago a ship from a foreign country came by and someone got him and he has been in our village ever since. You see the red arrow like mark on his forehead? That is why he is named Arrow." Scythe explained to Rin who timidly reached out to pet the ferret. Scythe was still in great pain and was struggling to get to her feet when she felt a supporting arm. Looking startled Scythe saw that it was no one other than Sesshomaru who was helping her up.

"Thank you." Scythe stumbled a bit before she could properly walk without doubling over in pain. Arrow climbed up Scythes leg and onto her shoulder where he licked her face with his little pink tongue.

"Hey there boy did you miss me? I wonder if the village misses you?" Scythe scratched the ferrets little white head. Sesshomaru did not have any opinion to the sudden new addition but he could sense that there was something not quite right with the little creature.

"Scythe are you well enough to travel?" Sesshomaru asked Scythe.

"Yeah just not so fast." Scythe replied.

"Milord what just happened I was walking when suddenly the green smoke came and I don't remember anything else." Jaken just came around and sat up rubbing his head with his little hands.

"It seems that Naraku has a new weapon." Sesshomaru responded as he began to walk and Ah-Un was waking up as well and was soon on his feet and Scythe rested some of her weight on him as they walked. Sesshomaru was impressed that the girl could hide her pain so well. If it had been anybody else they would not have made it back to their feet. Rin was giggling as Arrow had decided to go and have a sniff at her and was climbing all over her shoulders causing her to giggle happily. Scythe was smiling as she watched him interact with the little girl and was glad that he was such a nice animal and not a biter.

"I think he likes you Rin." Scythe told Rin after some time.

"We shall camp here for the night." Sesshomaru suddenly announced to the small group. Scythe was very grateful for she had accidently re-opened her wound a while back and was slowly loosing blood. Sesshomaru smelt the blood a while back and was waiting for Scythe to say something about stopping and attending to her injures but she stubbornly stayed quiet and after some more traveling Sesshomaru sensed that Scythe was loosing a dangerous amount of blood.

"Stop the bleeding or you will bleed out tonight." Sesshomaru told Scythe as he went off into the woods to go hunting. With shaky fingers Scythe fumbled with the strip of cloth she had around her side and she undid the cloth before she retied it tighter causing the bleeding to stop.

"Are you sure you are going to be okay?" Rin asked as she now saw Scythes blood soaked side.

"Yes little Rin I will be fine." Scythe reassured the girl though at the moment she was not feeling very sure herself. Soon Sesshomaru came back with a boar and he gutted it and cleaned it at a nearby river. Scythe was too tired to stay awake and watch Sesshomaru prepare the meat as fascinating as it was and soon her eyelids drooped shut as her breathing evened out and Scythe was fast asleep propped up against Ah-Un's side. As Sesshomaru prepared dinner he wondered if the girl was going to make it through the night with all her blood loss. Arrow had taken a spot in Scythe's lap and soon was fast asleep as well.

"Lord Sesshomaru I think Scythe has a fever she is sweating." Rin pointed out the sweat drops appearing on Scythe's brow.

"Hm." Sesshomaru instructed Jaken to wet a rag in the nearby river and put it on her brow to try and bring her temperature down. Jaken grumbled a bit but obeyed his master anyway. Scythe mumbled deliriously in her sleep as her fever went up a couple of degrees. Deciding that the rag just was not going to do it Sesshomaru picked up Scythe and walked to the river when suddenly Arrow shot out from between his legs chattering angrily. Sesshomaru ignored him and kept walking and soon he was at the rivers edge and he dunked Scythe into the cold water ignoring the fact that she was fully clothed and soon Scythe opened her eyes and looked at Sesshomaru before her eyes closed again. Sesshomaru sure had a long night ahead of him. Arrow was sitting at the rivers edge watching everything while chattering nervously. Sesshomaru ignored the little creature while he felt Scythes body temperature cool down in his arms. When Sesshomaru was comfortable with Scythe's cool temperature he brought her back to camp laying her back in her spot propped against Ah-Un. Sesshomaru ddid not fail to notice how the water turned red when he dipped her in the water and was glad to rid her of the smell of old dried blood for it would surely give away their spot or encourage an attack.


End file.
